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Media and Culture

Instructor: Stephanie Jo Kent, M.Ed., CI Office: undisclosed (see paper version) Email: steph@comm.umass.edu Office hours: undisclosed (see paper version) Classroom: undisclosed (see paper version) Days & Times: undisclosed (see paper version) Emergency Closing Hotline: 545-3630 Peer Advising: Machmer 411 Grades posted in SPARK

Click through on the header to read all about this class.

Creating your Wiki Account

1. Read both notes about confidentiality before creating your username. The overview on confidentiality and privacy for the whole course is in the Syllabus, and confidentiality specific to the Wiki is below. Click on the hyperlinks (in blue text) to go directly to this important information.
2. Select the "login/sign-up" button and follow the directions.
3. Once you are signed in, please go to the teacher's "User Talk Page" by clicking on this hyperlink: Steph's User Talk Page.
4. Read and follow the directions there! Leave Steph a message to complete this assignment.

Consider YOUR Privacy & Confidentiality!

Although you can remove your contributions at the end of the semester, once you join and begin posting your work becomes public. Make a responsible choice of user-name: either one that identifies you so others may know the quality of your thinking as a first-year university student, or one that shields you from obvious recognition. (See examples of student user-names from last semester's course on Interpersonal Communication.)

• Be aware that everyone in our class will learn who you are, and also that
• everyone will be expected to respect your choice of online/Wiki-identity (anonymous or not).
• No formal assessments related to grading will occur within this Wiki, only prompts and feedback designed to stimulate more, better, deeper learning.

Course Materials

1. Required PRS Clicker: available at the Textbook Annex. A significant portion of your grade will be earned through in-class assessments of learning utilizing the Personal Response System, a handheld clicker. The first day of use will be Thursday, 20 January. For more info see: http://www.umass.edu/prs/student/index.html
2. Required Text: (please purchase from the “Food for Thought Bookstore” in downtown Amherst (106 North Pleasant Street, 413-253-5432): David Croteau and William Hoynes, Media Society: Industries, Images, and Audiences.
3. Recommended Text: Glenn Yeffeth (Ed.), Taking the Red Pill: Science, Philosophy and Religion in The Matrix. (Out-of-print, seek and find used; some selections will be provided in EReserves.)
4. EReserves: (password undisclosed, see paper version) Selected readings as assigned by instructor and/or negotiated with students. Go to http://ereserves.library.umass.edu/eres/coursepass.aspx?cid=2608, and enter the password (see paper version of the syllabus).

Generic Course Description (SPIRE)

“An introduction to the social role of mass media in advanced industrial Western societies, focusing on how relationships between mass communications and the surrounding economic framework affect cultural, political, and ideological processes in society. An examination of social and historical contexts within which newspapers, radio, and television developed and how they are structured with attention to both the domestic and international implications of treating mass media as just another industry. Limited enrollment.”

Specific Course Description (Spring 2011, RAP section)

This course is the second of two classes designed for first-year students who are already declared majors in Communication and choose to participate in a residential learning community (RAP). This course investigates theories about the processes and roles of Western mass communication media within US social and cultural life, particularly their organization and effects on the way we “construct reality.” This course proposes that the mass-media (including print, radio, television, the Internet, and cinema) are a tremendously powerful influence on the manner in which people perceive the world around us, interpret its meaning, come up with plans for action, relate to each other, and construct our own identities. The course will consider several theoretical approaches to the study of media influence, but will also be grounded in “real-life” examples and case-studies. Student projects will apply knowledge learned during the course through exercises in cultural production.

Course Pedagogy

The design of the curriculum is to begin with you and the world you live in today. Then we will jump back and forth in time trying to imagine and understand the changes new media has brought to society historically, and explore how we can use this knowledge to anticipate changes and continuities for individuals and societies in the present and near future. As the generation known as Millennials, you have learned to manage yourself in the flux of extensive and diverse media saturation by becoming networked, working collectively, and distributing your time, energy and knowledge across multiple mediums – often simultaneously. The pedagogy of this course is designed to tap and develop these characteristics while providing you with critical tools for comprehending your position and cultivating agency within a complex institutional articulation of politics and economics (political economy) with (individual) consumerism and (socio-cultural) notions of democracy.

Main Course Activities (Point values in separate section below)

• Course Wiki: Some course assignments will require posting to this shared public webspace. Do not create an account before reading the note (below) on confidentiality! The prompt for this semester’s wiki-work is “Digital Realities and Analog Living”
• Twitter: if you do not already have a Twitter account, sign up at www.twitter.com and get used to adding the hashtag #LbLLP (Learning by Lifelike Pedagogy). Do not create an account before reading the note (below) on confidentiality! You will be expected to “follow” the teacher @stephjoke and your peers in the class.
• Tumblr: Students will create an individual blog on Tumblr and maintain it through the semester. Do not create an account before reading the note (below) on confidentiality! Some course assignments will be posted here. You will be expected to follow the teachers blog: http://cuttingthecake.tumblr.com/ and the blogs of your classmates.
• Midterm Project: small teams (3-5 students maximum).
• Final Course Project: large teams, two-three teams max, 8-15 students each.

An important NOTE about CONFIDENTIALITY

Twitter, the Course Wiki, and blogging on Tumblr and both projects use contemporary forms of public media. Any person from inside or outside of our class, the Communication Department, the entire University, your home town, the country, and any other place in the world with internet access and either English fluency or translation software can read what you write. This includes your future employer, your future spouse, and your children. Consider well whether you want to generate an alias or if you are confident/competent to write in your own name, accepting accountability for what you say. Please respect the choices of your peers and refer to them by the names they have chosen in each medium (UMassWiki, Twitter, Tumblr). Make life easier (if possible) for all of us by picking one version for use in all three mediums.

Points and Grading

• Homework assignments will involve reading assigned material, working in teams to design and present material to your peers in class, writing assignments for your Tumblr blog and responding to classmate’s blogs, adding relevant quotes and links to the course wiki’s “Encyclopedia of Communication Concepts & Theories,” creating and maintaining your User Page in the course wiki, Tweeting, and tasks related to researching and developing the midterm and final course projects.
• In-class participation will be expected as a matter of good team work, including joining and speaking up in fishbowls, taking notes on the chalkboard, re-arranging desks, asking questions, etc. Some in-class activities will extend beyond the assigned class period, such as being Wiki-buddies, Twitter pals, and engaged team members on group projects.

Overview of Grade Weights

1. PRS 20%
2. Wiki and Tweeting 25%
3. Tumblr 15%
4. Midterm 20%
5. Final 20%

Grading Criteria

1. Any assignment performed to the letter of the given criteria will earn a B (85%).
2. “A” quality work requires the demonstration of a level of creativity and/or comprehension that exceeds the criteria.

Grading Scale

94 - 100% = A

90 - 94% = A

87 - 90% = B+

83 - 87% = B

79 - 83% = B-

75-79% = C+

70-75% = C

60-60% = D

>60% = F

No Late Work, Little Make-Up, No Major Tests

Personal Response System daily quizzes

• Point-bearing assignments will occur in each and every class, primarily through the PRS Clicker system. Quizzes using the PRS Clickers will be administered at some point during each class period. Points will accrue on a 2 point per question basis.

• The more questions, the more value – this cannot necessarily be predicted as it will depend on contingent factors such as the type and importance of new concepts in the assigned reading, the need for reviewing & revisiting previously-covered and/or difficult concepts, and/or focusing the class’ attention. The daily quizzes will compose 20% of your final grade.
• If you are absent, you lose those points. A limited number of make-up opportunities (five (5) via the course wiki or your Tumblr blog) can be negotiated with the teacher. To earn credit the make-up work must be completed prior to the next class session. This policy applies to both university-sanctioned and unexcused absences.
• Freewriting assignments (in-class, sometimes spontaneous, sometimes planned) and Fishbowl Activities will compose a significant portion of this class’ voluntary participatory culture. When directly relevant these activities can earn you back points missed during that day’s PRS quiz.

Course Wiki

• Building and Maintaining an Individual User Page in the CourseWiki, as well as contributing proactively and fairly to the Compendium of Communication Concepts and Theories.

• Three quotes per reading assignment (daily), 5 points each quote – must be properly placed, signed, linked to directly from your User Page with an appropriate heading and explanatory/indexical diction, include an illustration, image, or link to a further resource or at least the citation, and may not be a duplicate! Points possible = 15 x 27 reading assignments = 405 points
• Three times during the semester (set-up/lab-day, midterm, and at the end) your Wiki will be assessed for synchronization and completeness. In order to find some time for myself I decided to search for service that could supply me with the prime quality custom essays at prices that would be reasonable enough. The final choice was QualityEssay.Com as they did have an excellent reputation. Points will be deducted for missing elements each time, 1st set-up = 100 points, midterm = 200 points, and the final = 300 points. You will NOT be able to earn back points lost, but you can make sure you don’t lose the same points again by adding them before the next check! Points possible = 600 points.

Twitter

• Tweets relevant to course material will earn one point apiece. They must include the hashtag #LbLLP for credit:one Tweet can earn double points if you further a conversation. You are required to tweet at least 3x/week for a “C” (75%); At least 7x/week for a “B=” (89%); and at least 14/week for an “A”(100%) in this category of class participation. You must track your own Tweets on the attached form. TOTAL Possible = 14/wk x 16 wks = 224 points.

Tumblr

• Tumblr blogentries at 50 points each assignment. Also post actively (1-2x/week at least) to prep for the Midterm and Final Presentations (the more you post the more you’ll have to draw from: this will make your presentations stronger).
• Tumblr Comments on Classmates’ blogentries at 30 points each assignment. Again, the more proactive you are in collecting and creating material for team presentations, the better you will perform on those projects.

Midterm Project

Midterm Project (20%) Individual videos will be designed by students, following he assignment created by digital ethnography professor Michael Wesch: Call for submissions: The Visions of Students Today. You can see his first remix here: samples of early submissions

This is worth 100 points. Criteria (in addition to subject-specific relevance) include:

• Credits with appropriate bibliographic information and the names or chosen aliases of all contributing/participating students,
• Identify the location of taping (at least generally) as part of the credits,
• Posted to youtube with VOST2011 in the title!!!
• IF you include music, post TWO VERSIONS to youtube, one without the soundtrack, make sure BOTH versions have the tag VOST2011
• Included on your Course Wiki User Page and the Class's page for Midterm Projects, and
• Shown to the class for feedback and discussion.

COM121 Submissions to "The Visions of Students Today

Click through to post the link to your video and see what your classmates have produced.

Final Project

Final Project (20%). 100 points. There are three possibilities for large team presentations (8-15 students, two or three teams):

• A compilation and presentation of the media saturation experienced by you (all the students in this class) along the lines of A Vision of Students Today, which is made by the some of the same people who made the digital anthropology video shown in the teacher’s opening Prezi, “Cultural Production: How Media Generate Societies.” (We will work toward this all semester.)
  

  
• A transmedia storytelling of our class’s encounter with a Deaf author, demonstrating principles of participatory and convergence cultures (Henry Jenkins)
• A project conceived by students, approved by the teacher, designed and implemented with the teacher’s input.

Cultivating Collective Intelligence

Sifting through ideas toward decisions to guide production of the Final Projects.

Additional Policies

• Academic Honesty: The University has strict standards against plagiarism and other forms of cheating. Do not put yourself at risk during PRS quizzes! Most of the rest of the work in this course is collaboratively-based, which means it is up to you to spread workloads fairly among teammates.
• Neither harassment nor discrimination will be tolerated.
• No late work. Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. No late work will be accepted. See “Points and Grading” above.
• Specific Accommodations are available for students with disabilities. You should see the instructor if you are struggling with course material for any reason.
• Study Habits: A good rule of thumb for college is to spend three hours studying for every one hour in class. Another guideline is to spend at least as much time studying as your instructor has spent with prior planning, grading, etc.

Course Schedule

Please be aware and prepared that adjustments may occur! The CourseWiki and Twitter will be reliable sources for up-to-date info.

First part of the course details

Sign up for a Final Project Team below

Buzz Buzz Boom

Ktrychon 11:43, 29 March 2011 (EDT)

Ddavies 14:39, 1 March 2011 (EST)

KimDelehanty 14:40, 1 March 2011 (EST)

Dfoley 14:40, 1 March 2011 (EST)

ckmetz 14:41, 1 March 2011 (EST)

Cdanoff 12:16, 4 March 2011 (EST)

Sgershlak 14:42, 1 March 2011 (EST)

Hdanfort --Heath Corey Storm Danforth 17:07, 12 March 2011 (EST)

Wallybeckler 18:14, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Csi 21:24, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Natasha Kapadia 21:28, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Nfoy 23:13, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Ali Haddad 13:06, 24 March 2011 (EDT)

--Kalf917 12:43, 24 March 2011 (EDT)

--Hbcohen91 13:16, 24 March 2011 (EDT)--Hbcohen91 13:16, 24 March 2011 (EDT)

Chadb0urne 13:39, 24 March 2011

BConn63 14:43, 26 March 2011

Get Your Flow On!

Media Saturation Survey and VOST2011 Compilation

Sorlando 15:10, 1 March 2011 (EST)

BrittR00 16:51, 22 March 2011 (EDT)

Csilv117 15:12, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Jameshoffman 15:30, 23 March 2011 (EDT)

Jwegrzyn

Nick Jablonski 12:13, 24 March 2011 (EDT)

NewLiberty 16:28, 3 April 2011 (EDT)

Hunte46 13:19, 12 April 2001 (EDT)

Rsimonoko 15:13, 19 April 2011 (EDT)

JLeone

MIDTERM VIDEO SHORTS for VOST2011 and other homework due 8 March

Readings due 8 March [Active Audiences and the Construction of Meaning]

1. Read The Buzz Buzz Boom (GREENS - you will be required to participate in a fishbowl during class through which your comprehension of this story will be assessed! Note: There may be a paper quiz!)
2. Read pp. 289-298 in C&H on Active Audiences and Interpretive “Resistance” & The Pleasures of Media.

SETH GORE VISITS! and homework due 10 March

Readings due 10 March

1. Read pp. 265-274 in C&H on The Active Audience & Meanings: Agency and Structure & Decoding Media and Social Position (one paragraph) and the paragraph on The Social Context of Media Use on p. 284. (This reading sets you up both for talking with Seth and also for the next Tumblr blogpost, #2 for GREENS and #3 for PINKS, which needs to be written either before, during, or immediately after spring break. It is highly recommended that you complete this blogpost BEFORE leaving for break!)

We need as many VIDEOGRAPHERS and camcorders AS POSSIBLE! Please sign up here with your wiki-signature.

--Csi 14:54, 6 March 2011 (EST)

--BrittR00 15:31, 9 March 2011 (EST)

--Kalf917 01:44, 9 March 2011 (EST)

SPRING BREAK 14-18 March

Do a bit of planning? When you return, you'll be expected to have finished reading

1. Henry Jenkins' "In Search of the Origami Unicorn," (the remaining pages 110-134, which is available via ereserve if you've somehow managed to skip it so far!), plus
2. the new readings in our course text, Croteau and Hoynes (see what's due 22 March).

second half of class details

to infinity and beyond!

final chance at extra credit

These blog comments will be worth up to 50 points, applied overall so it will help your overall cumulative score. But here's the deal: I will grade these hard, like a final exam essay. To do well, you must read the entire blogentry and anyone who has commented before you. Do not make silly mistakes like only responding to the last comment (and forgetting the overall context), or elaborating on one or two things you know well but are not a central part of the question.

What if we learn something bad?

Part of what I have hoped to teach is how to be a responsible learner. In the middle of my blogentry, Hip Hop's Conversation about Consciousness, I include a section about you, called "What if we learn bad things?" One of you said this when I challenged you about the economics of DayGlow.

1. If you comment to this blog entry, I'll boost your overall PRS and your overall Tumblr to 85-100% depending on the quality of your response. I'll assess your thinking on these criteria:

a) the representation of race via strategic reflection about consciousness (i.e., paying attention)

b) the social construction of reality reflected by the conversation (past/present) &/or suggested by various ideas(present/future)

c) the three social relations as they are implicated/evoked by the dynamics of this conversation

worth up to 50 points, applied overall

Steph will post a blog about this show Alive with Dance: A Catalyst for Movement.

1. If you comment to my blog entry, Catalyzing Movement, I'll boost your overall PRS and your overall Tumblr to 85-100% depending on the quality of your response. I'll assess your thinking on these criteria:

a) the representation of race via strategic use of bodies

b) the social construction of reality reflected by the show (past/present) &/or suggested by the show (present/future)

c) the three social relations as they are implicated/evoked by this show

What this means:

Pick one topic (a, b, or c) and do it well, guaranteed B (85%) across PRS & Tumblr.

Pick two and do them well, guaranteed A- (90%) across PRS & Tumblr.

Cover all three, well, guaranteed A (100%) across PRS & Tumblr.